Dunedin

Dunedin, New Zealand

Dunedin's dramatic hills surround a long, natural harbour, which attracted Maori settlers to the site over four centuries ago. More recently the area was settled by whalers, gold miners and migrants from Scotland and China. Memorable for its historical architecture, Dunedin is one of the best preserved Victorian and Edwardian cities in the Southern Hemisphere. Guided daily tours of the city a suburbs are operated by experienced local guides.

Dunedin's largest industry is tertiary education. The city is home to the University of Otago, New Zealand's first university (1869), and the Otago Polytechnic.

Popular visitor attractions in Dunedin include the Cadbury World chocolate factory and Speights Brewery - famous for its promotional branding based on being 'a real southern man' and being 'the pride of the south'. The Dunedin Chinese Garden and tea shop offers guided tours of the garden, and NZ Sports Hall of Fame displays and exhibits memorabilia that salutes the champions and their contributions to New Zealand's renowned sporting heritage.

The Taieri Gorge Railway takes you on a journey through the rugged and spectacular Taieri River Gorge from Dunedin's historic Railway Station to Middlemarch.

On the doorstep of the city on the Otago Peninsula, where you can find incredible wildlife - the Yellow Eyed Penguin (the world's rarest penguins), the world’s only mainland Albatross Colony, fur seals and sea lions. Many eco-tourism tour guides operate daily cruises enabling visitors up close encounters with these rare animals.